Que Sera, Sera
by Babe Ruthless
Summary: Whatever will be, will be. Or at least that's how the detective felt when it came to being exposed to the world. Rated T for minor language and sexual situations. I suggest you're over thirteen before you read this. Read and Review. Valduggery! ON HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

**So this is the sequel to my short story Her Choice.**** Once again, if you hate it, don't give me crap about it because nothing bugs me more than getting crap from people. Anyhoo, the Skulduggery Pleasant Series belongs to Derek Landy. I'm just borrowing the characters.**

Skulduggery Pleasant hated flying in planes.

He wasn't quite sure why, but it probably had something to do with the fact that the plane itself wasn't anything more than a metal box over thirty thousand feet in air, with the only thing below it being the Earth, which happened to be very far down. Normally, being high up in the air wouldn't bother Skulduggery; he had no fear of heights at all. But a plane wasn't held up by magic; oh no, it was held up by…well, he didn't know exactly what kept it in the sky, but the point was the same. He just couldn't put his faith in it.

The same could not be said for Valkyrie, who was at complete ease. In fact, she had fallen asleep almost as soon as the plane had reached cruising altitude twelve hours ago. Of course, she had woken up two hours later, and hadn't been able to fall back asleep again. She blamed it on her pregnancy, saying that her mother had told her when she was younger that she had gotten insomnia while she was pregnant with Valkyrie. It was a genetic thing, she'd explained.

That left ten more hours open for conversation. A good eight of those ten hours were spent discussing the baby. They talked about names, about whether they wanted a boy or a girl, and so on. The other two hours were spent on strategy; how they would tell Valkyrie's parents that they were dating and expecting a baby. It would be difficult and they both agreed that springing it on them would not be a good idea.

Skulduggery let out a sigh of relief when the captain announced that they would be landing in Dublin in about an hour, around two a.m. Valkyrie laughed.

"Look at you," she said, chuckling. "The big bad detective afraid of flying in an airplane."

"I am not," he said indignantly, though he did just a little. Not that he would ever admit that.

"Whatever. Is the Bentley going to be at the airport or do we have to call a cab to get back to Gordon's house?" Despite the fact that it was now legally her house, Valkyrie still referred to it as Gordon's house. It would always be Gordon's house to her.

The detective shook his head. "No, it'll be there. I called Tanith before we took off and made sure that she would drop it off. We have to take her to Ghastly's before we go home."

"She didn't put her bike in the trunk?" Valkyrie asked. Tanith usually had her bike with her wherever she went.

"It broke down. It's in the repair shop right now."

Secretly, Skulduggery was glad Tanith's bike had broken down. He knew how much Valkyrie loved to ride it and he knew that she knew how to drive it, but he still didn't like her doing it. They were dangerous machines that killed hundreds of people every year. Suppose one of those people was Valkyrie? He didn't know what he'd do without Valkyrie. Without her, his future was void.

They found Tanith sleeping on a bench in the airport waiting area. She was snoring lightly and as they looked closer they found that she was in REM sleep. Valkyrie took pity on her; it was two in the morning after all. Most people were sleeping at this time. Tanith proved to be a deep sleeper. Skulduggery ended up carrying her out to the Bentley, where he threw her into the backseat, which of course woke her up right away.

"Jesus, Skul, did you have to throw me?" Tanith said grumpily as she sat up, rubbing her head.

"You wouldn't wake up. If I can't sleep, then you can't sleep." After not sleeping for twelve hours in a row, Skulduggery was exhausted. The only thing keeping him awake was the fact that in a little more than an hour, he would be back at Gordon's mansion, fooling around with Valkyrie. After which, he could sleep.

Tanith snorted. "Like you're going to just go home and go to bed."

"She has a point." Valkyrie admitted. She paused. "We aren't going to just go home and go to bed, are we Skul?"

"Oh, God no. What do you think is keeping me awake right now?"

In the backseat, Tanith pretended to throw up. "Please keep that to yourselves you two. I do not need to know what you are going to do to each other when you get alone."

"Then I guess you don't want to know what we did in the backseat while you were still sleeping." Valkyrie winked at Skulduggery and he stifled a grin. He loved the mischievous side of his girlfriend.

"You guys did not do anything in the backseat while I was still sleeping." She was silent for a moment. "Wait, you didn't do anything, did you?"

"I don't know." Skulduggery said, playing along. "But if I was you, I wouldn't put my butt on the seat. Not until I get it cleaned."

After about five more minutes of silence, Valkyrie decided to break the good news to Tanith.

"Tanith, I'm going to have a baby."

"What?" Tanith's eyes bugged out so far Valkyrie was afraid they'd fall out. "Are you serious?"

"No, my name is Valkyrie, not serious." She turned around and grinned at her friend. "Yes, I'm serious."

"Ohmigod, that's great!" Tanith squealed, something neither Valkyrie or Skulduggery had heard her do before. Valkyrie stared at her for a moment before she joined in her excited babbling.

Skulduggery for the moment was lost in his own thoughts, thinking of his own murdered daughter Eliza. God, how he missed her. She'd been such a sweet little girl and she would have grown up to be an able and talented magician, had she been given the chance. He'd loved her so much and for the longest time he'd blamed himself for her death. In a way, he still did.

He wanted this new baby to be a girl and he wanted her dearly to be like her mother. Fiery, passionate, unafraid, but at the same time smart and compassionate. Skulduggery knew that if it was a girl, he would spoil her shamelessly and dote on her constantly. He would protect her to the best of his ability and beyond.

It would be nice if the baby was a boy too, Skulduggery thought to himself as they pulled into Ghastly's place. He could teach his son to throw fireballs and then they could play catch. They could take down vampires together instead of going to soccer games. It would be fun, he decided. But deep down he knew that he truly wanted to have a daughter again.

Skulduggery leaned up against the wall next to Gordon's front door, half asleep, while Valkyrie dug around in her purse trying to find the key so they could get in. It was taking a while and the detective found his eyes starting to close. And then a thought popped into his head and he was pretty sure it was the most important thought he had ever thought, if that made any sense.

"Valkyrie," he said urgently. "You asked me earlier on the plane what I wanted to name the baby and I said I didn't know. I know now."

The name had come to him in his half awake and it was so perfect, so great he didn't understand why he hadn't thought of it before. It was simple, elegant, and beautiful. It was the perfect name for their daughter, if it was a girl.

"Elena," he said. Valkyrie paused, her search for the house key momentarily on hold.

Elena. Elena, Elena, Elena. The name repeated itself in her head, engraining itself in her memory. "Elena," she said, liking the way it rolled smoothly off of her tongue. She smiled. It was perfect.

Skulduggery could tell she thought the name was perfect. From where he leaned, he beckoned her toward him his index finger. Valkyrie came, grinning like an eager child as she did. He grabbed her by the waist, pulling her closer, and closer, until there were only mere centimeters between them.

"You, my dear, look very beautiful tonight, but I think I could improve your appearance by removing your clothes." he told her, his hands sliding down to her butt.

"Why, I was about to say the same thing to you Mr. Pleasant." she whispered into his ear. "Can you read my mind? Or are you just lucky?"

"Both," he said, and his lips crashed against hers, driven by desire and need. She kissed him back with just as much intensity and force. They remained locked in each other's arms for a few minutes, before they both surfaced for air.

"I think," Skulduggery said, stroking her face. "That you should find that key so we can go inside or else we just might end up naked in the bushes."

"I agree," Valkyrie said. "We could get poison ivy all over ourselves if we ended up in the bushes. That would not be fun."

"Too true, too true."

While Valkyrie dug through her purse, searching for the key, Skulduggery's hands seemed to have taken on a mind of their own. They roamed all around Valkyrie's body, doing…things that made her gasp and moan. When she had finally found the key and unlocked the door, his hands took control of his arms, and made him scoop her up into his arms.

"My dear," Skulduggery said, kissing her once on the lips. "You move far to slowly for a man as fast as I."

It had been Desmond Edgley's idea to throw a surprise welcome home party for his daughter. After all, she had been away to America for six months all by herself. She would love to see her family as soon as she got back to her home. Or at least that's what he thought.

Everything was ready for Stephanie's arrival back at Gordon's house. Melissa had baked her a cake just for the occasion and the twins had even made her a welcome home banner. Fergus and Beryl were there as well, though they really hadn't done anything but complain. The twins had actually toned down their complaining a bit; there was plenty of time to harass their cousin later.

Stephanie had called before the plane to Dublin had taken off, saying that she would land sometime around two and be home around three. At two forty, all the lights in the house were turned off, and everyone went to their positions near the door, where she was easily in reach so they could group hug her. At five minutes to three, Melissa reported seeing a pair of headlights drive up to the house and everyone prepared to surprise her.

At first all they could hear nothing, but then she must have accidentally turned on the intercom, and then they could hear everything. They could hear her searching her purse for the house key, and then suddenly they could hear a man speaking.

"Valkyrie, you know how on the plane you asked me what I wanted to name the baby and I said I didn't know. I know now." He paused. "Elena."

Who is that? Desmond wondered. And who is Valkyrie and why is he telling her about baby names?

"Elena," repeated Stephanie. The way she said the name made it clear that it was the name she liked the best.

There was a pause and then they could hear the man through the intercom again. "You, my dear, look very beautiful tonight, but I think I could improve your appearance by removing your clothes."

"Why, I was about to say the same thing, Mr. Pleasant." Stephanie said in a whisper that everyone could clearly hear. "Can you read my mind? Or are you just lucky?"

"Both," the man said and then all that could be heard were sounds that deeply worried Desmond. Who was this man and why was he making his daughter make worrying noises?

"I think you should find the key so we can go inside or we just might end up naked in the bushes." the man said a few minutes later.

Stephanie's father cringed and prayed to God that they would accidentally turn off the intercom. Or that he would suddenly drop dead. That would work too.

"I agree," Stephanie said. "We might get poison all over ourselves if we end up in the bushes. That would not be fun."

"Too true, too true." the man agreed.

After this there came more noises, these ones worse than the first. They were little gasps and moans that everyone could tell came from Stephanie. They were, in Desmond's opinion, entirely too pleasure filled.

When the lock finally clicked, indicating it had been successfully unlocked, Desmond squeezed his eyes shut and prayed to God that he wouldn't hear or see anything too horrific. He did not want to see his little girl kissing someone with the intent to go farther than that. Hadn't Melissa talked to her about that when she was a teenager? Hadn't she told her no sex until marriage?

He cringed again as the word sex crossed his mind. Now that was something he didn't even want to think about, Stephanie having sex. Ugh.

"My dear," They were speaking again, much to Desmond's displeasure. "You move far too slowly for a man as fast as I."

The door was kicked open and a tall man wearing a hat stepped inside, Stephanie in his arms. Stephanie was kissing him with some sort of desperate need. Desmond looked around frantically, but there was no way he could escape without catching the attention of Stephanie and her 'friend'.

One of Stephanie's arms was wrapped around the man's neck; the other was feeling the wall, looking for the light switch. When she found, she flipped it on and the room was once more illuminated. She didn't seem to notice the banner as she broke apart from the man.

"It's a good you thing you've already knocked me up," Stephanie said breathlessly. "Because I don't think we're going to make it to the bedroom to put on the proper protection."

"Who said anything about the bedroom in the first place?" the man asked. "I was thinking we could just use a couch." Stephanie laughed.

Desmond couldn't take it anymore. He jumped up from his hiding place behind a desk, and shouted, "Stop! For the love of God, stop!"

To say Valkyrie was shocked when her father jumped out from behind a desk and starting shouting would be an understatement. It was only after this, however, that she noticed her mother, Fergus, Beryl, and the twins emerging from different places near the door, and the large welcome home banner that was stretched across the wall. She quickly summed up the situation with one phrase.

"Oh, shit."

"Oh shit indeed, my dear." Skulduggery agreed.

**Hey, just to let you guys know, in this story Elena is pronounced uh-lena, not Elaina. I have a friend Elena who pronounces her name the same way, and I decided to put her in my story, because Elena is freaking hilarious (For example, she was in our dugout during my softball game the other day. She stood on the bench and pretended to use a bat as a guitar. She then began to sing about our pitcher. The song started out 'Chloe is great and everyone loves her.' Then it turned into 'Chloe is a whore she smells really poor.' Oh God, it was great.). Anyway, tell me what you think. I'll see what I can do.**


	2. Chapter 2

_**So here it is. Chapter two. I've got nothing else to say, except for read and review please and thank you (I'll save my rambling for the end of the chapter. And ramble I will. I ramble on endlessly a lot.).**_

Valkyrie stared at her family from Skulduggery's arms, her expression shocked. What the bloody hell were they doing here? Who in their right mind would just turn up unannounced at someone's house at three in the freaking morning? It suddenly dawned on her. The welcome back banner, why everyone had been hiding. They had been throwing her a surprise party. Oh, sweet Jesus.

"Hey dad, hey mum." Valkyrie said in a surprisingly normal voice. "Fergus, Beryl, Carol, Crystal. Nice to see you guys. Skul, hon, you want to set me down?"

"No problem." He set her down on her feet, his face paler than normal. Skulduggery looked over at his girlfriend. "So, I guess we have some explaining to do."

"We do indeed." Valkyrie agreed.

Melissa Edgley approached her daughter. "Honey, what's going on?" she asked. "Who is your-your friend?" She hesitated before she said friend, knowing that it wasn't the proper word that she should use.

Valkyrie glanced at Skulduggery before speaking. "Everyone, this is my boyfriend Skulduggery Pleasant. Skulduggery, this is my family."

"It's nice to meet all of you," Skulduggery said politely, even though he had already met most of them. Not that they knew that.

"Stephanie," Desmond's voice was weary and wary sounding. Valkyrie turned to her father, dread in her heart. She didn't want to disappoint her dad. It would break his heart.

"Yes?"

"Just answer me one question." He closed his eyes. "Are you pregnant?"

What? That was not the question she had been expecting. And besides, why would he suspect she was pregnant? No one could even tell yet. There was no way he could suspect…unless he had heard them talking about baby names while they were outside. But that was impossible.

Then of course, he could have heard her comment to Skulduggery about already being knocked up. That would make sense, more sense than them hearing what they were talking about while they were outside.

"Yes." Valkyrie answered, lowering her eyes. She heard her father's sudden intake of breath. "I am." She paused. "How did you-"

"The intercom was on." Carol said snidely.

"We could hear everything between you and your boyfriend." Crystal sounded gleeful. Now her sister and her had something to really harass their cousin about. 

Valkyrie flushed a deep crimson color, while Skulduggery put his head in his hands. This was his fault! He must have accidentally turned on the intercom while he was leaning on the wall, damn it!

The sound of her mother's voice startle Valkyrie. "Oh, Stephanie," mum exclaimed, hurrying towards her and hugging her. "I'm so happy for you! A baby!"

It had occurred to Melissa Edgley that her daughter had always been incredibly responsibly and mature, more so than she had been at nineteen, and way more than Carol and Crystal had been. Stephanie had also confided in her mother, way back when she had had the sex talk with her daughter, that if she decided to sleep with a man it would be because she loved him, and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, and vice versa. She'd also confided that there was someone she had her eye on, but he was older than she was, and that she wanted to wait until she was of age so they could properly be together. She hadn't mentioned this someone since, and Melissa had a feeling that she had been talking about Skulduggery Pleasant.

And besides, Melissa thought as she hugged her daughter tightly, she'd always wanted grandchildren. She was just getting them sooner than she'd expected.

Valkyrie was shocked at her mother's quick acceptance, but quite pleased as well. She looked at Skulduggery and smiled, as if to say, "This is working out well." Skulduggery smiled back. Everything will be fine, he decided silently.

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Valkyrie woke up at nine' o'clock in the morning that day, still tired but ready to go back to work. Vacation had been fun, but she did enjoy her job. It would be nice to get back to work, even if that did mean dealing with Guild and Crux again, who still didn't like her or Skulduggery. But it would be nice to see Kenspeckle.

Skulduggery was already dressed and ready when she went down to the kitchen half an hour later. He was wearing his usual finely tailored suit, gloves, and hat, with a cup of coffee in his hand. After he had regained his flesh, he had also regained his love of coffee.

"Morning," he said and she smiled at him. "Well, you're oddly cheerful this morning." Valkyrie was not exactly what you would call a morning person.

"Just excited to be going back to work," she said cheerfully. Skulduggery set his coffee down and looked at her in a way that made Valkyrie nervous.

"I wanted to talk about work," his voice was careful. "With a baby on the way, you're going to have to be cautious, and I think we should discuss when you should go on maternity leave."

Valkyrie stared at him, aghast. Maternity leave? She hadn't even thought of maternity leave yet. She was barely three months along, but he was already thinking of maternity leave? That either meant he couldn't wait to get rid of her as his partner or he was really worried that the baby would somehow manage to get hurt. Valkyrie felt it was more the second reason than the first.

"How about we talk to Kenspeckle about this?" she suggested. "So we can see what he thinks? He is, after all, an expert when it comes to all things medical."

"Or so he seems to think so," Skulduggery added. He kissed Valkyrie on the cheek. "Alright, we'll check with Kenspeckle. Hmm." His expression was thoughtful. "Professor Grouse is not going to be very happy when he finds out I got you pregnant.

"He'll be thrilled for me," Valkyrie said, grinning. "But he'll be absolutely furious with you. He'll blame you for everything, and then go on and on about what a bad influence you are on me."

"He's always liked you better than me."

"It's because I'm so lovable." she said with another smile. She glanced at her watch. "Come on or we'll be late. And that'll just give Guild and his boyfriend Crux another reason to call us unprofessional and say they hate us."

The statue of Phil Lynott actually smiled in greeting when the detective and his partner arrived. It let them in and the new administrator led them to where they would meet with Guild. Today, for once, they didn't have to wait hours to see him. He arrived promptly within fifteen minutes, scowling as he saw the two.

Valkyrie and Skulduggery smiled and rose as the Grand Mage walked in. Valkyrie had to admit, that in an odd way it was nice to see his unhappy, scowling face after so long apart. That didn't mean she was happy to see him, but it was nice.

"How was your vacation, detectives?" Guild asked, unhappy to even be in the same room as Skulduggery and Valkyrie. They were possibly his least favorite people in the world, but now he had no other choice than to work with them.

"Blissful," Valkyrie said, sighing a little as the memories washed over her. Particularly memories of the beach.

"Well, it's over now." Guild said, frowning. He didn't like the way these two were acting around each other. Before they had left on vacation, they had simply been comfortable in each other's presence. But now, something seemed different about them. They were more familiar with each other. But on to the bad news. "Remus Crux has been declared mentally unstable." And now for more bad news. "You're now head detective again, Pleasant." And then he walked out of the room.

Skulduggery grinned. Finally, someone had had the sense to declare Crux nuts. It was about time.

Valkyrie smiled too. Now that Skulduggery was officially a detective again, that meant they didn't have to sneak behind the Sanctuary's back to solve cases. It also gave them another reason to laugh at Crux behind his back.

0000000

"You're pregnant," Grouse said, not quite believing his own ears.

"Yep." Valkyrie smiled at him. She and Skulduggery had arrived at the Hibernian about fifteen minutes ago. After a good ten minutes of small talk, she had decided to break the news to Kenspeckle.

"Well, who's the father?" Kenspeckle was really praying that it wasn't some American bloke who was irresponsible and foolish. He prayed even harder that it wasn't Skulduggery Pleasant.

"Well…" Valkyrie glanced at Skulduggery and they both smiled. "Skulduggery is."

She was slightly prepared for Grouse's reaction.

"Really, Valkyrie, you know you could do better than _him_," he cried, outraged. He then turned to Skulduggery. "And you, you fiend! How could you do that to such an innocent girl? Shame on you!"

"I seduced him, Kenspeckle," Valkyrie said and the Professor turned to her. "It wasn't all his fault. I did play a part in it too." It takes two to tango, she thought to herself. And then, as she found herself looking at her boyfriend, she discovered that she really wanted to tango with him.

"We were wondering," Skulduggery added, ignoring the shocked look on Grouse's face. "If you had any suggestions on what Valkyrie should do, what she shouldn't do, what she should eat. You know, things like that. It's been a while since I've been through this myself."

Kenspeckle Grouse found himself telling them everything they needed to know in as sort of daze. He really had no clue what he was doing. He was too shocked to even think. Valkyrie Cain was having Skulduggery Pleasant's baby! Everyone had known that they would get together eventually-but having a baby right away seemed a little drastic.

Oh well. It was none of his business.

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Vaurian Scapegrace was once again running from Valkyrie and Skulduggery down the street. It was the middle of the day and the detective and his partner were wary of the mortals on the street. It would do them no good to be exposed to the world as mages. As a matter of fact, that would rather suck.

"I am the supreme killer!" Scapegrace shouted. "I make messy art when I kill!"

While she ran, Valkyrie noticed how panicked the mortals look. "Ignore him," she yelled as she ran past them. "He's just forgotten to take his medicine." They looked slightly relieved.

They continued to run after him, going into a far more public street filled with more mortals than the previous one. Once again they were wary, even more so than before you.

"You cannot stop me!" Suddenly Scapegrace's voice changed; it wasn't half so high as it was a few minutes before. It was deep and rough, almost a growl. He whirled around in a move so quick it didn't exist and Valkyrie was blasted back by a gust of wind. The same happened to Skullduggery a second later, and then Scapegrace was stalking towards them, but Valkyrie had a feeling that it wasn't really Scapegrace. He couldn't have blasted them back with a wind that strong. He wasn't a strong enough elemental. No, something had to be possessing him.

By this time, many mortals on the street had stopped to watch, their expressions ranging from shock to horror. Many of them had their phones out and were catching all of it on video. Valkyrie and Skulduggery didn't notice this, as they were too preoccupied with Scapegrace.

They both stood and Scapegrace laughed. "You fools. You cannot stop me." He sent a fireball at the two of them, which Skulduggery caught and hurled it back at him.

The battle went on for several minutes before Scapegrace, or whatever was possessing Scapegrace spoke again.

"I tire of this," he said. "I will see you again, Skulduggery Pleasant, Valkyrie Cain." And then he disappeared with a pop.

Valkyrie and Skulduggery exchanged glances. What the hell had just happened? It was then that they noticed the crowd that had gathered around them, all the camera phones that were out and currently recording their every movement.

"How did we not notice those?" Valkyrie asked Skulduggery, gesturing to the camera phones. Several flashes went off and it became clear that they also had regular cameras.

"I quite honestly don't know," he admitted. He pulled his hat just a little bit lower over his face. "I suggest we hurry out of here quickly though."

"Indeed we should." Valkyrie agreed. The two shared another glance with each other, then took off running as fast they could.

**I really did not like writing this chapter. This may have something to do with the fact that I wrote it at two-thirty in the morning while I was babysitting, waiting for the parents to get home so I could sleep (then of course a three year old fell out of his toddler bed and started crawling head first into the wall. It didn't help that every time I came near him he started screaming his lungs out even more than he already was. It was not a fun night.). Then, when I got home I found out my grandpa was in the hospital because he had passed out for no apparent reason and hit his head and hurt his back. Yeah, this is just a little taste of how my day is going. (Then again, I did make forty bucks baby sitting, so there's something positive to think about.)**

**Anyway, read and review, please and thank you.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here it is. Chapter three. Insert tired sigh-*sigh*.**

Skulduggery and Valkyrie spent the three days after their very public fight with Scapegrace holed up in Gordon's manison. Already, the videos and photos were on YouTube, face book, myspace, and national-scratch that-_international_ news. They were a marvel to people, as experts had examined all of the photos and videos and proved they weren't fake. Valkyrie and Skulduggery knew it was only a matter of time before someone recognized them. Or recognized Valkyrie, that is.

Guild had already visited the two, saying he was extremely angry with them-well, when wasn't he really angry at them?-but so desperate for a head detective that Skulduggery got to keep his job. He had also said that after this little incident the magical community probably wouldn't be a secret for much longer.

To say Valkyrie felt guilty was an understatement. If they hadn't chased Scapegrace through a public place then this whole thing wouldn't have happened and they wouldn't be stuck inside hiding from the media.

Skulduggery tried to convince her otherwise.

"It's not our fault," he said when she told him all of this. "Scapegrace ran into a public place. We just followed him there and he was the one who used magic first. It's his fault. We were just defending ourselves." His words gave her a little comfort.

On the fourth day they spent hiding in Gordon's mansion, they turned on the television to channel three after receiving a call from Mr. Bliss.

They saw Guild on the screen, looking tired and slightly sad as he announced that magic was real and that there were people in the world who could control it.

Surprising herself and Skulduggery, Valkyrie felt a tear roll down her face, and her hands dropped to her stomach as they often did. Everything they knew was about to change, whether they wanted it to or not. For better or worse.

**This sucked hugely. It's also ridiculously short. But I really don't give a shit right now. My grandpa died this morning and I just posted it because I had to do something to keep myself busy because the busier I am, the less I think about it.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter four…there is swearing in this chapter…..don't read it if you have a problem with swearing…..quite frankly, I don't give a shit about swearing…**

Valkyrie knew there was a reason she hated morning shows. It probably had to do with the fact that the hosts were so damn cheerful. Or that the shows themselves were on at seven in the morning. But mostly, it was because if Valkyrie was watching a morning show, it meant she wasn't sleeping, and that was what mornings were for. Sleeping in, not watching men and woman high on coffee act cheerful and talk about flower arrangements.

But yet, here she was, sitting on couch in a studio, Skulduggery beside her, on a morning show. The hostess, an obnoxious woman who's name Valkyrie had forgotten, was smiling brightly at the camera. She spoke, still turned towards the camera.

"I'm Dawn Connors and welcome to the Dawn Show." She over enunciated every word that came out of her mouth. "Today, my guests are actual magicians." Valkyrie winced at the term 'magicians'. "We'll be discussing the magical world in detail today on the Dawn Show. Now, I have the pleasure of introducing Detective Skulduggery Pleasant, and his partner Valkyrie Cain."

The show was not filmed with a live audience, so the only applause Valkyrie and Skulduggery received when the camera turned to look at them came from a recording in the sound booth. She hid her grimace and nodded towards the camera, while Skulduggery did his best to smile. It didn't work and he ended up just nodding as well.

God, she hated Guild. This of course had been his idea and he was doing it just to piss them off. 'Reassure the mortals,' he had said. 'Make sure they know we harbor no ill will towards them.'

Reassure the mortals my ass, Valkyrie thought as she looked at Dawn Connors' smiling face. They had become an entertainment to mortals, a source of amusement. Scientists laughed at them, and said they were nothing more than skilled magicians who were capable liars. Politicians wondered about them, thought about using them for their own political gain. And celebrities like Dawn Connors used them to up their low viewer ratings.

"So, Skulduggery," the hostess leaned towards Skulduggery, batting her eyelashes just a little too much in Valkyrie's opinion. "What's it like being a detective?"

"Difficult," he said, leaning away from her just a bit. "Dangerous, of course. Time consuming." He looked uncomfortable.

"I guess that means you don't have much of a personal life, right?" Dawn was really starting to piss Valkyrie off. She had a feeling that the hostess had chosen the pink low cut shirt that showed way too much cleavage just for Skulduggery. Well, the shirt made her look like the whore she was, Valkyrie decided. It was time to interrupt.

"I don't mean to interrupt," Valkyrie said, keeping her voice polite. "But he does have a personal life. He has a girlfriend too. Well, more like unofficial wife." She glared at Dawn Connors.

Skulduggery looked at his girlfriend and smiled. Of course he knew the Connors woman was flirting with him. He had just chosen to ignore it. Valkyrie, on the other hand, had decided to take action. And as for the unofficial wife part…well, he wanted her to be his official wife more than anything.

"Really?" she said, her voice dripping with sweetness and doubt. "And who is that, might I ask?"

"Me," Valkyrie said, as her hand found Skulduggery's. She held it for a moment, making sure Dawn Connors got a full glimpse of it.

The hostess did. She kept her facial expression delighted, though Valkyrie could see the flash of anger in her eyes. Valkyrie leaned her head on Skulduggery's shoulder, who then planted a kiss on top of her head. Valkyrie smiled triumphantly as she heard the snickers of the camera and production crew, as they laughed quietly at Dawn's blushing face. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

When they had finished up at the studio, Valkyrie and her boyfriend drove back to Gordon's mansion, intent on getting a cup of coffee, then tracking down Scapegrace. Of course, Valkyrie wouldn't be drinking coffee; she would get tea loaded with caffeine instead.

But as usual, things did not go according to plan. Because when they pulled into the driveway, the first thing they saw was Valkyrie's parent's car parked in the driveway. Valkyrie sighed; she had been expecting this, sooner or later.

Desmond and Melissa Edgley were once again worried about their daughter.

They had seen the video of her and that Skulduggery Pleasant fellow on the news. They'd tried calling her, but had found that her cell phone was shut off and the phone line had been disconnected. Then they had seen her and Skulduggery Pleasant once again on the television, this time on the Dawn Show, saying that they were both 'mages' and 'sorcerers'.

This left them no choice. They would be waiting for their daughter when she got back to Gordon's house.

At eight-thirty Desmond and Melissa were sitting in the living room when the front door opened and Stephanie called out, "Mum, dad, you there?"

"We're in the living room, dear." Melissa replied. She and Desmond exchanged glances when Stephanie, followed by Skulduggery Pleasant entered the room. Desmond frowned. He was liking Skulduggery Pleasant less and less every time they met.

Stephanie looked faintly nervous. "I'm guessing you saw the Dawn Show this morning."

"Stephanie," Melissa rose from her seat, looking concerned. "What's all this about magic, and you being a-a magician? How long have you known about this?"

Desmond saw his daughter exchange a glance with Skulduggery Pleasant before she spoke. He frowned. His dislike for this Pleasant fellow was growing. He disliked him for many reason, but mostly for getting his little girl mixed up in some cult that believed in magic. And for knocking her up. That was a big reason too.

"We really don't like the term magician." Those were not the words Desmond had been expecting. "Mage or sorcerer is more appropriate. Magician makes us sound like we're stage performers who pull bunnies out of hats."

"Are you insane?" Desmond found himself saying to Stephanie. "Magic isn't real, Stephanie. You need help." Melissa gave him a look that clearly said, Shut Up Right Now Before I Smack You. But Desmond continued on, turning to look at Pleasant. "And you, what have you done to my daughter? She used to be a good girl, but then she met you at Gordon's funeral, and ever since then she's been distant, and strange!"

Skulduggery started to say something, but Desmond cut him off.

"And then we find out that you're together, as a couple, and that suddenly you're having a baby together!" The word baby was said as if it was a dirty word. "My Stephanie would never do that, not with the likes of you! What have you done?"

But Skulduggery wasn't listening to Desmond Edgley anymore. His attention was turned to Valkyrie, who was sniffling, trying not to cry. Her dad thought she was crazy. He had told her she needed help. And then he had proceeded to blame it all on Skulduggery. Then he'd even had the nerve to mention her baby like it was a mistake, a dirty thing. How could he?

"It's not Skulduggery's fault dad." she said, raising her head. "Do you want to know when I got into this? I was twelve. It was that night I was at Gordon's house, after he died. A man came, burst into the house, tried to kill me. And then came Skulduggery, and he saved me. He had to leave though. I didn't want to be alone, so I went with him. And it just went on from there." Valkyrie stared at her dad. "Will you listen if we talk, or will you just automatically disregard what we say and think we're crazy?"

"We'll listen," her mum said, glaring at her dad. Valkyrie smiled gratefully at her mum, before launching into a detailed summery of all of her and Skulduggery's adventures.

**Once again, kind of short. I really haven't had much time. We've spent the whole week at my grandma's house pretty much, and today was my grandpa's funeral, so I had to write this in a rush in the morning before we left.**


	5. Chapter 5

**My mouth hurts. Really bad. Braces will do that to you and I just got my braces on Friday. Life is good. No, I'm just kidding, it freaking sucks. Ha Ha. Anyhoo, read and review.**

The next day, Valkyrie saw the most gruesome scene she'd ever seen in her entire life.

The small flat was literally covered from head to toe in blood. It painted the walls and ceilings. Upon entering, Valkyrie had to pull up her hood so that it didn't drip on her. Her stomach rolled as she saw the two bodies lying in the middle of the small living room, the both of them missing several key limbs. She swallowed her bile as she spotted a woman's head by the couch, right next to a leg.

Oddly enough, Valkyrie and Skulduggery were not the first on scene. The mortal police had arrived there first. They gave the duo weird looks as they ducked under the yellow tape and approached them. A man with an awful comb-over and a mustache hurried towards them, looking disgruntled.

"I'm sorry, but you are not permitted to be here. This is a crime scene." The man said to them, authority obvious in his voice.

Skulduggery stuck out hand to the man, who stared at it as if he wasn't quite sure what to do. "But we are permitted to be here. I'm Detective Pleasant and this is my partner Valkyrie Cain. We're from the Sanctuary."

"The Sanctuary, eh?" The man eyed them doubtfully. "I'm Detective Smith, Scotland Yard. Doesn't the Sanctuary regulate magic people or something like that?"

"Yes," Valkyrie said tartly, suppressing a sigh of annoyance. Magic people. Jesus Christ, they were _sorcerers. _"We investigate crimes associated with those who practice magic as well." She gestured to the remains on the floor, cringing a little. "They were Elemental sorcerers."

"Aria Fierce and Grayson Barassa." Skulduggery said, putting his gloved hand back into his pocket. "They were a married couple. Their chosen profession was rogue vampire slayers." He paused, cocking his head to the side. "There's someone in the smallest bedroom."

Without another word, Valkyrie and Skuldugggery headed off towards the smallest bedroom, ignoring the protests of Detective Smith who followed them. They skirted around the scattered remains, and went down the hallway. Skulduggery opened the door, and Valkyrie stepped in.

Her heart sunk as she spied the twin bed in the corner with the pink flower bedspread, the toys scattered around the big princess toy box in the corner, and the doll that was lying on the bed. This was a little girl's room. But where was the little girl? Valkyrie prayed that they wouldn't find her scattered in the living room with her parents too.

She heard Skulduggery's little gasp and Detective Smith's silence. She shared a glance with her partner and the same thought passed through their minds: where was the little girl?

Valkyrie went checked the closet, while Skulduggery looked under the bed, and Detective Smith mumbled something about writing a report. Still no sign of the little girl.

If I were a scared little girl, where would I hide? Valkyrie asked herself as she looked around the room again. Her gaze landed on the relatively large toy box, with all the toys lying around it-wait, around it? Understanding dawned on her. Of course. Who would think to look in the toy box?

She walked to the toy box, careful not to make any noise, and opened the lid. A little girl, about five, jumped out, moving with incredible speed to the other side of the room. Valkyrie turned around to look at her.

She was a beautiful little girl, with black hair that fell in curls, a petite heart shaped face, thick eyelashes, and big blue eyes that held no fear. She eyed the occupants of the room with a wariness that surprised Valkyrie. Almost like she was expecting trouble. Valkyrie was impressed.

Valkyrie kept her voice gentle and she smiled at the girl. "Hello," she said, trying to look as non-threatening as possible. "I'm Valkyrie Cain and this is my partner Skulduggery Pleasant. We're from the Sanctuary."

"What about him?" The girl gestured to Detective Smith, uncertainty in her eyes.

"He's from Scotland Yard. He's mortal." Skulduggery said, and then the little girl hurled herself at Valkyrie, wrapping her arms around her waist. Valkyrie could feel the little girl shake as she tried not to cry.

"It's okay," Valkyrie soothed, stroking the girl's hair, and rubbing her back. "You're safe, it's okay. We're here now."

**MORGAN MUMBOWERl;)**

In the hour that it took Valkyrie and Skulduggery to drive the Bentley to the Hibernian, they had learned three things: (1) the little girl's name was Colie, short for Nicole, (2) she was an only child, and (3) she knew what had killed her parents.

The detective and his partner had decided it would be best not to press her until they had Grouse check her out and make sure she was okay. There were no obvious injuries on her body but that didn't mean that there was something wrong that they hadn't noticed yet. Caution would be best here, they'd decided.

"Why hello," Grouse said, oddly cheerful as they intruded in on the peace of his lab. "What can I do for you today, Valkyrie? Oh," he added as he spotted Skulduggery. "It's you." His voice became decidedly unhappy sounding. "I suppose you've gotten Valkyrie hurt again."

Valkyrie stifled a laugh. "Not this time. Kenspeckle, this is Colie." Colie stepped out from behind Valkyrie shyly. "Colie, this is my friend, Kenspeckle Grouse."

"Hello," Colie said in a quiet voice. Since leaving the apartment, she had become very quiet, and shy acting.

Kenspeckle looked at Valkyrie sharply, though he kept his voice light. "Hello, Colie, it's very nice to meet you." He paused hesitantly. "How about you go into my office while I talk with Valkyrie and Skulduggery."

"Okay." Colie went where Kenspeckle pointed.

When she was out of hearing range, Grouse turned to glare at the two of them. "What is going on here?"

In low voices, Skulduggery and Valkyrie explained Colie's situation. Kenspeckle's face remained stony throughout the whole thing. When they finished, he sighed.

"I can understand why you brought her here and for once I'm actually a little impressed. Maybe you two won't be such bad parents after all."

Valkyrie laughed.

**MORGAN MUMBOWER:p**

"It was a shadow."

Valkyrie turned to look at Colie, who was sitting in the backseat of the Bentley. It was the first words she'd spoken since they had left the Hibernian ten minutes before. The little girl was sitting quietly in her seat, her hands in her lap, a book Grouse had given her beside her. She looked up at Valkyrie, her blue eyes seeming ten times older than her actual age.

"What was a shadow?" Valkyrie asked, her voice gentle.

"The shadow killed mummy and daddy." she answered.

Valkyrie looked at Skulduggery, who had pulled over to the side of the road. He looked back at her and then they both looked back at Colie, who was still looking at Valkyrie.

"It was a big shadow. Mummy and daddy knew in it was coming, so they told me to run to my room and hide and stay very quiet. I heard stuff in the living room and then there was no noise. Then my door opened and everything got very cold. There's a hole in my toybox and I peeked out of it, and I saw the shadow. It was there for a moment, then it left."

A shadow? Valkyrie closed her eyes. A shadow killer. It could be anywhere. It could be hiding in the most obvious places and they would never know, unless it decided to kill them too.

Once again, the same words could be used to describe the situation.

Oh shit.

**Okay, so the page breaks, where it says Morgan Mumbower on it is an inside joke. I'm not quite sure why I decided to put that there. I just got back from a four day three night basketball camp and this morning I went to bed at about two thirty after hanging with my team mates and these girls from another team for about five hours (we were supposed to be sleeping these five hours, after one of our coaches busted us for being outside of the dorms past eight thirty. She came down to the rec room to yell at us while we were playing catchphrase at eleven thirty. It was not funny.) We spent those five hours creating endless inside jokes including Morgan Mumbower and I can't say the rest because they're too inappropriate lol. We also did the Stanky Leg, which is a dance. So, I'm blaming it a lack of sleep. I'm rambling now, so Read and Review please!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, so I have news to tell you, but it's kind of long so I'll tell you at the end of the chapter.**

Skulduggery and Valkyrie, along with Colie, were met by a dozen reporters when they returned to Gordon's mansion. They ran along side of the Bentley, their cameras flashing brightly in Valkyrie's face, nearly blinding them all. Valkyrie gaped open mouthed at them.

What the hell? How did the damn parasites figure out where they lived? Valkyrie didn't give out their address. For God's sake, they weren't even listed in the stupid phonebook! Who had freaking ratted them out to the media?

She turned to look at her boyfriend. "I don't know how this happened." she said in a normal voice, with only an undercurrent of her hidden rage showing. "Do you?"

"Nope." Skulduggery glanced in the backseat at Colie, who was looking at the reporters with a kind of wary interest. "Guess we should find out what they want."

"I'll do that." Valkyrie rolled down her window and stuck out her head. "ALL RIGHT WHAT THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU WANT WITH US?" she bellowed.

"Very well put." Skulduggery commented as he watched her.

"Ms. Cain, Ms. Cain is it true you and Detective Pleasant have taken over the case of the two people murdered in their flat?" someone yelled.

"Is it true Detective Pleasant and yourself are dating?"

"What about the little girl that was reportedly found in the apartment?"

"Where do you shop?"

"How do your parents feel about all this?"

Valkyrie watched in amazement at the reporters. Really? They were going to badger her and her partner about things that weren't even important. So what if they were dating? It didn't mean they were any less professional. What did it matter how her parents felt about magic? It was her business. And why the bloody hell did they want to know where she shopped?

"YES WE HAVE TAKEN OVER THE CASE, YES WE ARE DATING, AND YES, THE REST IS NONE OF YOUR FUCKING BUSINESS! NOW GET OFF OF MY PROPERTY!" She pulled her head back in and rolled up the window.

"That was lovely." Skulduggery said offhandedly. He watched all the reporters still buzzing around the Bentley. "Maybe we should throw a fireball at them, so they get the point."

"Just drive." Valkyrie said. "They'll move or we'll run them over." She turned her head to look in the backseat at Colie. "Colie, honey, don't ever repeat any of the naughty words I just said, okay? Not until you're at least in the fifth grade."*

Skulduggery turned to look at her oddly. "Not until the fifth grade?" he repeated.

Valkyrie just smiled.

**;)Page Break(;…..Morgan Mumbower lol**

"Jesus, Cain, what's up with the roaches on your front lawn?" Tanith said as she stepped into the main living room of Gordon's mansion.

"That's what I'd like to know." Valkyrie replied, taking her friend's coat. "But I think I've got a feeling who told them where to find us." she sighed. Sometimes, her family really sucked. Damn Beryl or Carol or Crystal or Fergus, whoever told on her.

"Your aunt?" she questioned.

"Probably." Valkyrie shrugged. "Thanks for fighting the reporter horde and coming. I don't want to be alone with Colie when Skul is out, with all the reporters outside."

"You can take care of yourself." Tanith remarked.

"I know, I just don't feel comfortable by myself. Skulduggery is almost always with me. I feel odd when he's not."

"That's what love is like." Tanith winked suggestively.

"And you would know that how?" Valkyrie teased. "Would…Ghastly have anything to do with your learning?" She howled as her friend blushed.

**Another Page Break….another Morgan Mumbower**

China Sorrows was incredibly surprised to find Skulduggery Pleasant on the doorstep of her library, wearing his old disguise. He hadn't worn the long trench coat, or the scarf, wig, and sunglasses since had regained his flesh back. It was now almost odd to see him wear them, after he had gone so long without doing so.

"Skulduggery, what a surprise." she said as she let him in. "What can I do for you today?"

"I don't suppose you've heard anything about the double murder we're investigating?" he asked her as she led him to a sitting area. He removed his disguise as he did.

"I don't think so. Why do you ask?"

"What do you know about shadows?"

China looked at him, her perfectly plucked eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What kind of shadows?"

"The kind that kill people through dismemberment and make sure they make a mess of it." Skulduggery replied conversationally, as if they were discussing the weather.

"Its not a shadow then." China said. She tapped a symbol on the coffee table and a teapot floated towards them, followed by two tea cups. "Tea?"

"That's what I thought and no thank you to the tea." Skulduggery sighed. "What do you think?"

"It sounds like an angry poltergeist, maybe taking the form of a shadow. Or a ghost of some sort." China put a spoonful of sugar into her own tea cup. "Why did you ask about the shadow?"

"Because we have a witness who says the thing that killed her parents was a shadow." Skulduggery said. "She's six years old though."

"Then it probably was a shadow, or something that looked like a shadow." she answered. "Also, I hear a congratulations is in order. I heard you and Valkyrie are finally together and expecting."

"Yes." Skulduggery hesitated before he spoke again. "That was the other reason I came, China. Her father hates me enough already, so I'm hoping I can undo some of the damage by marrying her." The way Skulduggery saw it, Desmond Edgley was old fashioned enough to want his daughter married before she had a baby. Maybe by marrying her, he would please him and put Skulduggery into his good graces.

But that was only half of it. The detective loved Valkyrie more than anything in his life. He knew he would never leave her. But marrying her just made it seem more official. Not to mention make her off limits to certain teleporters he knew had their filthy eyes on her.

"And what do you want me to do?" China's voice was borderline between interest and disinterest.

"I want you to help me pick out a ring."

**There's something deeply wrong with me…Morgan Mumbower**

The dinner party had been Skulduggery's idea, oddly enough.

Valkyrie felt kind of confined, in her pretty purple and black dress. It was old fashioned, like something you'd see in the fifties, but looked very good on Valkyrie. Ghastly had made it for her, saying she had nothing to wear to a dinner party.

She sighed. They were in the middle of a case, with a six year old to look after. Why did they have to throw a dinner party and invite her parents and their magical friends? Skulduggery's reason had been and I quote, "to blend our to very different worlds together. And to have pie." Blend our very different worlds together my ass, Valkyrie thought as she walked down the stairs into the kitchen. The whole thing was very suspicious.

Colie ran up to her when she reached the bottom of the stairs. Ghastly had made her a dress as well, one that was very similar to Valkyrie's. But Colie's dress went down past her knees, instead of stopping at the knees, and was a lighter shade of purple. Valkyrie smiled as she bent down to smooth the little girl's curly black hair.

She seemed to be recovering remarkably well from the loss of her parents. It had been only two days, yet Colie seemed perfectly fine. She never spoke of her parents and seemed to have formed an attachment to Valkyrie, which was fine with the detective and his partner. They adored the little girl.

"Valkyrie, Skulduggery told me to tell you that your mum and dad are here." Colie looked up at her.

"Have they met you yet?" Valkyrie asked, smiling still. Colie shook her head. "Then lets go introduce you."

She held Colie's hand as she went to the living room, where her parents were sitting. Her mum smiled at her.

"Mum, dad, this is Colie." Valkyrie gestured to the little girl, who smiled brightly, and waved. "Colie's been staying with us."

"Hello, Colie." Valkyrie's mum said. "It's very nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too." Colie looked down shyly. Valkyrie smoothed her hair again.

"We'll be eating soon." she said. "We're just waiting on some friends of ours."

Her parents exchanged looks. "Who?" her father asked.

"Um, Tanith Low, Ghastly Bespoke, Kenspeckle Grouse, and Fletcher Renn."

It was then that Skulduggery came into the room, looking very nervous. He turned to look at Mr. Edgley, looking him straight in the eye.

"Mr. Edgley, could I speak to you for a moment? In private?" he asked. Desmond looked hesitant for a second, before standing up, and following him into Gordon's study.

"What is it?" Desmond asked crossly.

Skulduggery looked down at the ground before he spoke, closing the door behind him.

"Mr. Edgley, I love Val-Stephanie more than anything in the world. And I love our baby more than anything in the world too. I will do anything to protect them both, even die." He paused, before looking back up at Desmond, who looked suspicious. "I want to marry her, Mr. Edgley. I've the got the ring and everything. All I need is your blessing."

Desmond looked Skulduggery Pleasant over as he thought over his answer. Desmond didn't necessarily like Skulduggery, but he was asking permission before he asked Stephanie to marry him. That did show some glimmer of respect. But he had to make sure first.

"Have you ever loved someone as much as you love my daughter?" Desmond asked him.

Pain flashed across Skulduggery's face. "Yes, Mr. Edgley. You remember how we told you that magic extends our lives?" Desmond nodded. "A long time ago, a very long time ago, I had a wife. We had a daughter, Eliza, too." Skulduggery covered his face with his hands. "It was during the magical war, many years ago. I was fighting and one of the generals on the other side led me into a trap. He killed my wife and Eliza in front of me. He murdered them, and I was so angry I grabbed my dagger, and went to kill him. But it was a trap. The dagger was coated in poison. He killed me.

"They used me as an example and when all that was left of my body was my bones, they threw me into a bag into a river. Somehow, I came back, and found the strength to pull myself back together, literally. I came back stronger, even though I was a skeleton." Skulduggery stared straight ahead at nothing in particular. "I killed him. The general that murdered them."

Desmond looked again at Skulduggery. There was a different person just below the surface of him and he had a feeling his daughter knew that person inside and out. That she loved that person.

"You have my blessing." Desmond said, before walking out of the room.

**Morgan Mumbower**

Valkyrie couldn't help but notice how well her parents were interacting with their magical friends. They chatted and acted together like they were all normal people. And they hadn't even said one word about Ghastly's scars. Valkyrie was pretty impressed.

Dinner had already been served and eaten. Tanith, Ghastly, Kenspeckle, Fletcher, her parents, Skulduggery, and Valkyrie were all in the living room, Colie having been put to bed after they had finished eating. Everything was going fine.

Then, of course, someone had threw something through the window.

It was package and it burst into white smoke the moment it touched the floor. Valkyrie began to cough as it filled her lungs, while Skulduggery let out a cry. Then, just as suddenly as it arrived, it disappeared, along with the smoke.

Valkyrie turned her head to look at Skulduggery and her jaw dropped. Suddenly, her boyfriend's clothes were far too big for him. In fact, they were hanging off of him like he was a scarecrow. Because once again, Skulduggery was a skeleton.

**Okay, so my mom has decided that I've been spending way too much time on the computer, and is now going to be taking the computer cord with her to work, so you can expect less frequent updates. Also, I'm going to be very busy coming up, so once again, expect less frequent updates. I'll try to get a chapter in at least every week or every two weeks. Review, please.**

**XOXO Ruthless**

***The comment about not being able to say naughty words until Colie is in fifth grade comes from myself, because that's when I really started swearing, and when I told my brother he can start swearing. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay, so here it is. Chapter Seven, I think. I'll have to check. Yes, I am that scatterbrained I have to check what chapter I'm on.**

Valkyrie's week only got worse.

After Skulduggery had turned back into a skeleton, her parents had of course freaked out. While her father had had a melt down, Kenspeckle had ruled that the mysterious package had contained some sort of evaporated potion that had turned the Detective back into a skeleton. Tanith had suggested that they pursue whoever had done it. This idea had been promptly shot down by all other parties involved, saying it was too late to do anything drastic.

The next day, Valkyrie, and Skulduggery were dragged into Guild's office, who yelled at them about how unprofessional they were because they were having a relationship that was more than a work relationship. He then proceeded to yell at them about how much he hated them and how bad they were, and how much he wished that the Sanctuary had another pair of detectives that were able enough to be head detective. He then banished them from his office and told them to go solve the case. The whole tirade had been very annoying.

Of course, her parents wouldn't leave them alone either. She could understand that. After all, she was dating a skeleton. That would freak out any parent. And she was having the skeleton's baby. Once, again, that would freak out any parent. That would freak out anyone who didn't understand, actually.

And then there was the media. Who hadn't, thankfully, figured out that Skulduggery was a skeleton, due to the fact that he had been wearing his disguise all week. But they still wouldn't leave them alone. One reporter had even had the nerve to break into Gordon's mansion. Valkyrie had burnt her camera and singed her eyebrows. She didn't feel all that bad about it either. It had discouraged them slightly.

Then there was the case, which was currently at a stand still. Which they could find no scrap of evidence for at all. Which was really pissing Valkyrie off. Skulduggery too, but it really infuriated Valkyrie. Mostly because of Colie. Valkyrie really was getting attached to the little girl, and she felt it was necessary to catch whoever killed her parents for Colie's sake.

"Why can't we get a break?" Valkyrie complained as she slid into bed next to Skulduggery Friday night. "Seriously, it's really annoying."

"Just be patient." her boyfriend soothed. He was sitting next to her, fully dressed in his now fully tailored new suit. He couldn't sleep anymore. He had to resort to his meditation again.

"Yeah, yeah," she grumbled.

Skulduggery looked at her hesitantly, before sliding his hand into his pocket. "I've got something that might cheer you up." he said. "Make your week go better."

"What is it?" Valkyrie asked, looking into his eye holes. Her mouth dropped to the floor as he pulled a ring box out of his pocket. "Is that-"

He opened it, revealing instead of a traditional diamond, a black onyx ring. The band was silver, with small amethysts imbedded in it. The onyx itself wasn't all that big, but it wasn't that small either. It was perfect. Valkyrie gaped at it wordlessly.

"China helped me pick out the ring." Skulduggery said. He was looking at Valkyrie in an intense way. "We both agreed that you would like it. You do like it, don't you?" He sounded unsure.

"I love it," she managed to choke out. God, was that her heart that was thumping in her chest like a mad rabbit? The people next door could probably hear it.

"So," Skulduggery said after a small pause. "Valkyrie Cain, will you marry me?"

The silence seemed to stretch on endlessly as Valkyrie pinched herself to ensure that she wasn't dreaming. It hurt. She wasn't dreaming.

"YES!" she shrieked, throwing herself at him. He caught her and held her tight as she planted kisses all over his skull, which was an odd sensation in itself. Warm, happy tears ran down her face as Skulduggery slid the ring on to her face.

She was getting married.

**I know, short chapter, but I was short on time. I don't think my mom is going to take the computer cord with her to work after all, but I'm not sure. Review, if you will.**


	8. Author's Note

**Okay, so I have sad news. **

**I'm going to be taking a break from this story for a while. I can't think of anything really good to keep it going, and I find that when I have writers block, it helps to take a break from the story, and focus on another one for a while. I will finish this story, as soon as I can, but I just keep writing the shittiest chapters, and I can't think of anything good right now.**

**So, I'm going to start a different story, one that's a little bit more well plotted out than Que Sera Sera is. It's going to be a Harry Potter/X-Men: The Movie crossover, focusing on Logan, and an OC of my own creation. So check it out if you're interested. I haven't posted anything yet, but I will.**

**Peace out,**

**Ruthless XOXO**


	9. Another Author's note please read

**Hey, this is Ruthless. I have an announcement regarding this story, ****Que Sera, Sera. ****It's not bad news either.**

**So, I am going to rewrite the little part of the sotry I have done, and I'm pretty much going to scrap most of it, and just focus on Valkyrie, Skulduggery, and the baby. I really wasn't sure where I was going with everything else that was going on-Skulduggery becoming human again and such. So…yeah. Just thought anyone interested in reading the story should know this. Hopefully, I will have the first revised chapter up by tomorrow, if not sooner, and then the next one up by Thursday of next week. I go to basketball camp on Sunday, and I'll be there until Wedsnday, with no access to a computer. **

'

**XOXO**

**Ruthless **


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